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Foreign Fighters: Examining How Foreign Fighters Will Become a Greater Threat to Europe If Fighters Are Left in Former ISIL Territories

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Foreign Fighters: Examining How Foreign Fighters Will Become a Greater Threat to Europe If Fighters Are Left in Former ISIL Territories M.A. in Political Science With a Concentration in European Union Policy Studies James Madison University Foreign Fighters: Examining how Foreign Fighters will become a greater threat to Europe if Fighters are left in former ISIL territories Joshua Pickett Abstract This paper will explore the challenges presented by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, (ISIL) and, in particular, the return of foreign fighters to their home countries within Europe. The main question is whether these returning fighters still present a threat to Europe and how member states can cope with this situation. The transition between their presence to the battle ground and an ordinary life is a parameter that needs to be studied, as well as the role of their families and their direct environment. At the end, I will propose some policy recommendations that the European Union could adopt to prevent Further radicalization and to achieve integration. Written for Topics in Foreign Policy and Internal Security Presented at the James Madison University - Max Weber Program Graduate Symposium, EUI, Fiesole, Italy, 12 April 2019. Definition The United Nations Security Council resolution 2178 of 24 September 2014, operative paragraph 6, recalls its decision in resolution 1373 (2001), and defines foreign fighters as “any individual or individuals who travel to a State other than their States of residence or nationality for the purpose of the perpetration, planning, or preparation of, or participation in, terrorist acts or the providing or receiving of terrorist training, including in connection with armed conflict”. This definition is completed by the compilation of three reports that the UN Executive Directorate of the Counter-Terrorism Committee has presented. Reference is made to the willful provision or collection, by any means, directly or indirectly, of funds by their nationals or in their territories with the intention that the funds should be used, or in the knowledge that they are to be used, in order to finance the travel of individuals who travel to a State other than their States of residence or nationality for the purpose of the perpetration, planning, or preparation of, or participation in, terrorist acts or the providing or receiving of terrorist training; and, the willful organization, or other facilitation, including acts of recruitment, by their nationals or in their territories, of the travel of individuals who travel to a State other than their States of residence or nationality for the purpose of the perpetration, planning, or preparation of, or participation in, terrorist acts or the providing or receiving of terrorist training.i With the rise of radical extremist groups, along with the outbreak of the Syrian Civil war, the world, especially Europe, is seeing a rise in “foreign fighters”. When the majority of the population hears the word foreign fighter, most think of someone who is engaging in acts of terror, partly due to news agencies which portray foreign fighters merely as combatants. In reality, the world has been seeing a new form of foreign fighter compared to the experiences we had in the past, which was mainly inspired by the djihadist movement. When the Syrian civil war broke out, we witnessed many people feeling the need to move to Syria in order to aid the Syrian opposition to Bashar al-Assad’s forces. Kurdish people living in Europe and in other areas of the world felt it was their duty to fight along aside the local Kurdish population in the fight against ISIS and the fight against Bashar al-Assad’s forces. Introduction More than 42,000 people from 120 countries have traveled to Iraq and Syria to join the so-called Islamic State. An estimated 5000 to 6000 European citizens have left their home countries to pledge their allegiance to and fight for the Islamic State. However, after a few years, with the caliphate quickly crumbling, Europe has seen a rise in fighters returning to their home countries. According to the European Union’s top counterterrorism official, Gilles de Kerchove, more than 5,000 Europeans have returned home.ii Throughout its history, Europe has had to deal with the returning of foreign fighters from the Spanish civil war, World War II, the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now the war in Syria. The threat of foreign fighters returning to the European Union, and the possibility that they engage in radicalizing others, or being responsible for terrorist attacks is a real and valid threat.iii Unfortunately, one of the recent terrorist attacks, which was among the deadliest ones on European soil was the realization of this scenario. This paper examines how member states are handling the threat of foreign fighters returning, what 2 measures the European Union has adopted, the efficiency (or lack of it) of these provisions, and how the European Union could increase its effectiveness in this field. Co-operation against terrorism in the European Union has significantly increased in the recent years. European arrest warrants and improved information systems have made it easier to detect and arrest returning jihadists as they are crossing European borders. However, the attacks in Paris and Brussels in 2015 and 2016 respectively have highlighted deficiencies that need to be resolved. iv For instance, many analysts have criticized frequently the European Union’s member states for the lack of intelligence sharing between one another’s secret services. The lack of intelligence sharing between agencies can prove a dire misstep in Europe’s security policies. While each individual Member State has the sovereign right to share or not to share information or work with member states they choose to work with, the purpose of a secure European Union would be undeniably better served through a more complete integration in this sector. With the old symmetrical warfare dying and a new type of threat emerging the European Union and its member states need to raise themselves to the necessity of circumstances The threat of terrorism and radical extremism has to be seriously taken into consideration and integrated in relevant EU policies This section highlights and shows the need for member states to share information with each other’s intelligence agencies and how the measures the European Union has taken so far failed to deliver the desired outcome. The Future Outlook At its height, ISIS controlled an area the size of Great Britain and ruled over 10 million people. It was estimated that the area included more than 40,000 international citizens from 80 countries, according to the data from the International Center for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR). v Today, the territory that is under ISIL control is just less than a few hundred square meters due to concerted action by US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and their mission to take control of the last bit of ISIL controlled territory. As a result of successful allied operations, ISIS has been eradicated at a large extent and as a result thousands of women, children and fighters are now the custody of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. Out of the thousands of people in custody, it is believed that hundreds of European citizens are among them, thus making even more pressing the question on how to address the issue of their return and reintegration to their homelands As many press reports suggest, the fate of ISIL fighters has been a major issue on the minds of western decision makers and this has been emphasized especially by the fact that the Syrian Democratic Forces have been able to quickly mark significant victories and take the last remaining amount of territory under control by ISIL forces. In March of 2019, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported that they have cornered the remaining ISIL militants in a neighborhood of the Baghuz village near the Iraqi border. The consequences of armed hostilities when a war is coming to an end are always difficult to address, and the war in Syria is no exception to this widely accepted rule. It is estimated that currently, US-backed forces ranging from Kurdish troops to the Syrian Democratic Forces, have over 800 ISIL fighters in their custody, as well as thousands of women and children of ISIL fighters in camps waiting to return to their home countries.vi The de facto Kurdish government currently has control over the northeastern part of Syria and has explained to its international partners that the Kurdish 3 administration and forces cannot hold or detain massive amounts of ISIL fighters because they do not have the capacity or the means to put them on trial. In the same vein, the United States have lately increased their pressure to European nations in order to receive former ISIL fighters. In mid-February, US President Trump sent out numerous tweets demanding the United Kingdom, France, and Germany to take back their captured citizens. In one statement he said, “The United States is asking Britain, France, Germany and other European allies to take back over 800 ISIS fighters that we captured in Syria and put them on trial. The Caliphate is ready to fall. The alternative is not a good one in that we will be forced to release them...”, adding with another tweet that “The U.S. does not want to watch as these ISIS fighters permeate Europe, which is where they are expected to go. We do so much and spend so much - Time for others to step up and do the job that they are so capable of doing. We are pulling back after 100% Caliphate victory!”vii So far, European leaders’ response has been lackluster to say the least. The French Justice Minister, Nicole Belloubet, told the press in February of 2019 that “France would take back militants on a “case by case” basis but would not comply with US president Donald Trump’s tweet”.
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